The Oceanaire featured in Orlando Magazine
Walking on Aire: Snazzy Oceanaire pleases crowds with superb seafood and formal aura. Recession, reshmession. The Oceanaire Seafood Room, a pricey white-linens restaurant on I-Drive, was so packed on a recent Saturday evening that I could have sworn the economy was booming again. Hoards of servers bustled in and out of the kitchen delivering chilled platters of raw shellfish and steaming plates of hot foods. Add in the Art Deco décor and the formal quality of the service and you’d think you were dining on a grand, old-style cruise ship.
Like a steakhouse, Oceanaire sells everything separately; no salad or side dish is plated with your entrée. But the premium dining experience you’ll find here is worth a bit of a splurge. The offerings change daily, with the day’s seafood selections listed at the top of the menu. From the raw bar, guests can sample up to 10 types of raw oysters as well as chilled mussels, crabs and more.
I suggest beginning your evening with Maine lobster bisque, clearly a specialty. The deep orange soup has a strong depth of lobster flavor, almost like caramel. Executive Chef Gary Hiles, an operating partner who’s been with Orlando’s Oceanaire since it opened in May 2007, credits the bisque’s excellence to extra steps such as roasting the lobster shells before simmering them for the stock, and mixing in a bit of “tomato product” and paprika to bring out the color.
We went classic with our other starter by trying the clams casino. Five tasty, tender clams sat in open shells with a broth of melted butter and topped with a square of applewood-smoked bacon. The shells were set on big hunks of rock salt to keep them at the desired temperature.
I especially enjoyed Oceanaire’s complimentary starter. Each party receives a relish tray with simple items such as a deliciously crisp pickle, black olives, pickled herring and carrot sticks. I felt as if I were back at my Aunt Katie’s holiday table in 1975.
My Chief Taster and I debated the merits of Oceanaire’s swordfish compared with one we’d recently sampled at Ocean Prime, although we agree that both fish steaks are superb. Oceanaire’s grilled Cape Hatteras swordfish is seasoned simply with salt and pepper, and it sits atop a rich cassoulet of Great Northern beans flavored with sausage. It’s perfect.
The menu always offers one fish roasted whole, and the choice during my visit was Florida hog snapper. The entire fish is coated with herb butter, and steamed clams and mussels snuggle into its sides. A confetti of diced tomato and scallions adds color and flavor.
Creamed corn is a five-star side dish. Bright kernels of exceptionally sweet corn—called “candy corn” and grown on the West Coast—were blended with a little cream, a dash of leeks and a dose of spices. For dessert, Oceanaire’s cheesecake is creamy and flavorful. The menu says the sweet is served with seasonal berries, but ours had only one fanned strawberry and a small drizzle of berry coulis. Several tables around me ordered baked Alaska, probably because of the dramatic presentation: It’s set on the table engulfed in flames.
The economy may be going up in smoke, too, but a visit to Oceanaire will help you remember the good times. – Rona Gindin